Mackenzie+B

__Day #1__
Dear Journal, Today, my family and I left our home at one a.m., but I slept most of the way there. Finally, we got to Voyageurs National Park. It was amazing there. We started walking through the luscious green trails. Next, we saw a baby bear, but it ran away right when it saw us. Finally, we left and had to drive five hours and fifty-four minutes to Eagle Mountain.

Now, we are at Eagle Mountain. Eagle Mountain is the highest part in Minnesota. We took a tour of Eagle Mountain. We found out that Eagle Mountain is located forty-seven Degrees latitude and ninety degrees longitude. We also learned that Eagle Mountain was two thousand, three hundred one foot above sea level! Nick didn’t notice how tall it was until we climbed half way up it. Then, he was panting for air. Next, we got to a certain part where the trees parted. We saw an astounding lake! This beautiful lake was called Lake Superior. Now, we are going to drive one hundred fourteen and twenty-eight miles to reach Superior National Forest. We reached Superior National Forest, and right away my mom noticed all of the beautiful wilderness, like the colorful birds. She also noticed the wooden picnic tables and the quiet walking trails. We didn’t spend much time there, so we had to leave after being there forty-five minutes. Now, all I have to do is sleep. That’s what happened in day #1.

__Journal Day #2__
Dear Journal, Today, my family and I went to a place along Lake Superior We had a lot of fun at the lowest point in Minnesota. We even went surfing! When we were surfing, my mom went out on her surfboard. She was doing well, until she hit a tiny wave that was about two inches tall. She went flying backwards! When she got to shore, she gagged, and said,” I think I swallowed a gallon of water. Now there is a gallon less from the 3,000,000,000,000,000 gallons that were in here.” Finally, we had to leave, and go to Grand Rapids, Minnesota.

We are now at Judy Garland hometown, after we drove an hour and forty six minutes. Next, we drove around the town for five minutes.

__Day #3__
Today, we woke up, and drove to Duluth, Minnesota. My mom, my brother, and I didn’t do anything in Duluth, Minnesota except sit, and wait in the car. After that, we went to see the Bear Grease Dog Sled Marathon, and a girl named Sandy won with her lovable huskies help. Then, we went to the ancient Glensheen Mansion. Finally, we had to leave, and get ready for the fresh new day.

We started the day off by going to Duluth, Minnesota. It’s one of the largest cities in Minnesota! When we got there, we had a difficult time driving with all of the snow, and sadly we got stuck. My dad was really annoyed, so he climbed out of the window. He sprinted to the store, and bought a cheap shovel. My dad took the shovel, and shoveled the snow out of our path. The road was completely clear, when he was done. Then, my dad threw the shovel into the back of the car, and said that we had no time to go to any other places. Finally, we drove zero and forty-one hundredths miles to the John Bear Grease Dog Sled Marathon. First, we arrived at the race, and got out of the car to watch the seven dog teams take off. Next, we got back in the car to speed to Highway 2. We got out to that certain point, and watched the dogs zoom by. Then, my mom noticed that there were only six dog teams! Now, we are at the finish line, but with all of the wipeouts there is only three teams left. Suddenly, team three’s lead dog trips, and team one’s dogs fall over them. They got back up slowly, but they were too late. Team two slides to a stop, after they pass the finish line. The curly haired, redhead named Sandy stepped off the sled, and took off her hat. She received her award with lovable huskies. Now, we had to leave, and drive three and twenty-nine miles to a place called Glensheen Mansion. Now, we are at the Glensheen Mansion. We walked into the one hundred two year old building. When we were there, I noticed that the furniture was very old, and out of style. The furniture was also covered in mold, but it was as priceless as Demi Lovato’s half eaten sandwich. Next, my dad looked out the small, ancient window, and saw the 6 or 7-acre woods. Then, he looked at my mom, and said,” We should buy this land. It would be great for hunting. How much money should we tell them we want?” My mom turned to look at my dad, and said,” Dave, we are not buy any land here. We are in Minnesota. If we were in Wisconsin, I would think about it, but I don’t want to buy land that we are not going to use.” Finally, we had to leave, and prepare for the days ahead of us.

My family and I learned a few things, and had a lot of fun. The first thing we learned is to always bring a shovel. The second thing we learned was that the Glensheen mansion is one hundred two years old. The last thing we learned is that we are not allowed to buy land in Minnesota. I learned that even if something is old doesn’t mean it can’t be priceless. That is what my family and I learned in Minnesota on day three.

**__Day 4__**
Dear Journal, Today we visited three thrilling places. We visited Fort Snelling, the State Capital, and St. Paul. Fort Snelling is an old military outpost. The Minnesota State Capital is the place where certain people decide to make a law, or to decide if a law is fair or not fair. Finally, we visit St. Paul, and learn that it is one of the biggest cities in Minnesota. We also learned that St. Paul is the Arts and Culture Capitals of the Midwest. That is a brief summary of day number four.

We reached Fort Snelling, and we took a tour. We learned that we were at an eighteen twenties military outpost. We saw where they had to live, and were told how they lived. We also walked into an old hospital. One of the scary, dirty looking men who worked there, showed us an even dirtier tool! The tool took out bullets, but it must have been excruciating. Finally, we had to leave, and drive sixteen minutes to get to the state capitol.

My family and I got to the off white building, and we slowly walked in a large room. We watched an exciting group, make a small decision about what they were going to do about this one law. It was so boring that my brother and I fell asleep. When we woke up, we annoyed my parents so much, that we finally got to leave. My parent still wanted us to learn something, so they bought us this book thing, before we left. It was actually pretty interesting. Now, we have to drive five minutes to visit St. Paul. First, we got to St. Paul, and quickly parked the car. We got out of the car, and walked 1/8 of a mile. Then, we saw a mime! This mind-fooler had fake balloons in his hand, and was pretending to be lifted up in the air. Finally, the mime held up a sign that said ‘//If you want to see more hilarious stunts pay three dollars to watch the show.’// Then, my dad said that it was getting dark, and we have to return to the car. We walked back, and got in the car. we drove away, wondering what stirring events will happen tomorrow. That is what happened on day number four.

We enjoyed day four. We visited the historical area called Fort Snelling. Now, we have all seen an ancient tool. We also visited the state capitol. My brother and I didn’t learn anything there, but we did get a cool book. Lastly, we visited St. Paul. We now know what the Arts and Culture capital is. This is my journal entry for day four in Minnesota.

__Day 5__
Dear Journal, Today we are visiting the Minnesota State Fair, Jeanette Piccard’s hometown, and Minneapolis. The Minnesota State Fair was very thrilling. We went on the electrifying ride called Space Tower. We also saw a rodeo. When we went to Jeannette Piccard’s hometown, we got a souvenir. The souvenir was a smaller version of a hot air balloon. After that, we went to Minneapolis. We had a fun time walking on the trails, riding a train, and watching the street sweeper. That is a short summary of our day four. When we reached the fair, we got out of the car, and sped to the entrance. We paid to get in, and sprinted to the haunted house. We paid the toll, and got on the ride. We went through half of the roller coaster, and then we slowed down. There were mirrors, and when we looked into them, we saw a ghost! Each mirror had a different ghost. Finally, the roller coaster went faster, and a minute later, the ride was done. That is the haunted house roller coaster that we went on.

We also went on one other ride. One of the rides we went on was called Space Tower. This ride was a roller coaster in the dark. There were a few lights that looked like stars, though. My mom was screaming the whole way through. I laughed at her. We got off the ride. That was the ride called Space Tower.

We went to get cotton candy, and Nick saw a group of girls headed towards the rodeo. Nick instantly wanted to see the high school rodeo. He sprinted there, leaving us behind. When we finally got there, there was Nick sitting by a big group of girls. I could tell he liked all of the girls. They liked him too, until he told them he was from Wisconsin. The girls left, after he said that, and Nick lost interest. Finally, Nick came over by the rest of the family, and said, ”I’m bored, now. Let’s leave.” We walked out of the high school rodeo, and walked back through the zigzagging path. We walked to the exit, and spotted the black ford truck. We walked over to it, and got in. Now, we have to leave the parking lot, and drive eight miles to Jeanette Piccard’s hometown. When we reached our destination, we drove through the city. Ten, we spotted a little house with a sign on it. The sign said, ‘this was once the house of Jeanette Piccard’s family. Jeanette Piccard was the first woman to ascend into stratosphere. On October 23, 1934, Jeanette piloted a balloon to an altitude of 57,579 feet. Accompanying her was her husband, Dr. Jean Piccard. She was the first licensed woman balloonist.’ That is what the sign said.

We drove to a store, and there was a sign in the window. The sign said that they had remote-controlled balloons, with little Jeanette Piccard figures in it. We walked into the store, and went over by the remote-controlled hot air balloons. The price tag said forty bucks, so my dad said,” No!” Then, one of the workers came over, and said,” If you buy in the next ten minutes this balloon will be seventy-five percent off.” We scurried towards the cash register with the large box in our hands. We bought it, and then, the worker said that there was not longer a sale on the remote controlled hot air balloons.

We put the big box in the back of the car, and opened it. My dad pulled out the balloon and the remote. He started playing with it. It kept going up and up and up. My dad made sure everything worked properly, before we put it away. We put it in the car, and had to go zero miles to get to Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Now, we are going to meet this life-changing thing in Minneapolis. We left the car at the store, and walked ¼ of a mile. Then, we saw a golden, and chocolate colored stray puppy! The puppy had no collar or microchip. We put up posters, and the puppy will be staying with us. I let this little girl sniff my hand, and I gently picked her up. My mom said,” We should probably get a leash and collar.” We walked back to the store, and sure enough, they had both a leash and a collar. We brought the leash and collar, and decided to name her, Sadie. That’s how we met the adorable Golden Retriever mix.

Now that we have Sadie, we decided to take her on our first walk together. It was tough! I held the leash half of the time, until I was ¼ of a mile ahead of my family. I sat on the path, but Sadie still pulled. My dad said that we should wrap her, so I gave the leash to my brother. Nick wrapped the leash around her tiny body. When he was finished, it looked like a tiny harness. She stopped tugging right away. This is how our walk went with Sadie.

We walked back to the truck a different way this time. We took a different road, and we notice that there was a street sweeper. Sadie noticed it, too. She started barking and yelping, and she wouldn’t stop. Then, the muscular guy who worked the street sweeper, turned off the massive machine. He got out of the machine, and said,” I’ll wait until you guy are out of sight. Then, I’ll turn the machine back on. I don’t want this little sweetie to get taken to the pound. We all told him thanks, and rushed towards the truck. When we got to the truck, the blankets were already laid out, so we got in. For the first night, Sadie got to sleep with me. I made sure we were both comfortable, before I fell asleep. That’s what happened in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Today, my family and I learned many things. First, Nick learned that he always needs to pack good clothes and cowboy clothes. You never know when you might see someone you are interested in. Next, we learned that you always need to bring extra spending money. You might get a traffic ticket, or in our case you might need to buy a remote-controlled hot air balloon. Lastly, you should always need to bring a leash, a collar, and just in case a poop bag. You can learn a lot of things in one day, just like us.

__Day 6__
Today we visited three wonderful places, but Sadie couldn’t come to any one of them. First, we visited the Guthrie Theaters, 818 South 2nd Street, Minneapolis, Minnesota. We watched A Streetcar Named Desire. Next, we went to the Capella University, 225 6th Street South, Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Capella University is a college. Lastly, we went to Minnehana Falls, Minnesota 55417. The Minnehana Falls is a beautiful waterfall park.

When we got to the Guthrie Theaters, we walked in. We bought four tickets for the show. It cost over one hundred sixty dollars! We went over by our seats, and sat down. We were sitting right next to a few twenty year olds. Then, one of those boys told his group of friends,” Hey, I watched this play five times. This is the unraveling of Blanche DuBois plays out in this atmosphere of heated passion and pulsing sweat! Blanche settles in with her sister Stella and Stella’s husband Stanley, Blanche makes an image that masks her unpleasant secrets. Dude, I know it might sound a little formal, but it is awesome.” I suddenly realized, what this guy was saying. This is how the show started.

The show began, and it was quite interesting. Stanley refuses to bend to his sister-in-law. Stanley soon discovers that there is more to this Southern lady than she would like. A Street Car Named Desire makes it sound like this woman has more tragedy than she can handle. She may have driven her husband to suicide. As the play ends, Blanche is at last ushered away, while Life in New Orleans goes on. That is what the show was about. The movie was over now, but before we walked out, we got a water bottle for Sadie. Also, we got a slushy for everyone in our family. I got a mountain dew slushy, and my brother got a blue slushy. My dad got a blue slushy, but so did my mom. That is what we got after the play. Finally, we got back to the truck, and gave Sadie a drink of water from the water bottle. Now, we have to leave, and drive zero and nine tenths of a mile to arrive at Capella University. We arrived at Capella University, and we walked in. Then, we saw an army guy. Next, a lady walked up to us, and said,” Don’t worry. We have armed forces. Capella holds Military Advanced Education Gold Standard Award as a Top Twenty Military Friendly Institution.” She walked us through the College, and pointed out about fifty rooms. I don’t understand how she could remember of the rooms. That is how Capella University’s inside was like. We asked this girl if we could go outside, or see their students work progress. Then, she said,” Yes. You may look around the Institution, and explore the support resources you’ll find. This includes academic advising, career counseling, and our exceptional library.” We kept looking at her, and finally she said,” Oh! Yes you may explore the nature of the outside facilities.” We walked outside, and saw the green, lushes trees, grass, and bushes. That is how the outside looked. We were ready to go, so we left with out tell the lady. When we reached the car Sadie was whimpering for water. We took her out of the hot truck, and gave her a drink from the water bottle. Suddenly, the lady ran outside by us, and said,” You forgot your pamphlet.” She gave it to us, and ran back in. Nick took the pamphlet by the garbage can, and dropped it in. We put Sadie back in the car, and took off. Now, we have to drive five and seven tenth miles to get to Minnehana Falls. We arrived at Minnehana Falls, and skipped in. When we walked in we noticed that this place looked so peaceful. It looked so peaceful, because it was overlooking the Mississippi River. There was also, a waterfall, and ancient face sculpture things that made it look peaceful. Also, in Minnehana Falls, there are trails that you can take to get from area to area. That is what Minnehana Falls is. When we walked in, there was a sign. The sign said.’ Minnehana Falls is one of Minneapolis’ oldest, and most popular park. This park gets eight hundred fifty thousand visitors annually. That is a lot of people. Minnehana Falls is located at the intersection of Hiawatha Avenue and Minnehana Parka Way.’ That is what the sign said. Finally, it was getting dark out, so we had to leave. We ran back to the car, and I fell asleep with Sadie in my arms. That is what we did in Minnehana Falls.

Today, we learned that you should never sit next to a bunch of twenty-year-old boys. They always wreck things by saying what is going to happen next. Second we learned colleges are all the same. You don’t need a pamphlet, if you already saw the college. Lastly, we learned that at Minnehana Falls, there is the beauty of art, and nature. That is what we learned on day eight.

__Day 7__
Today, we traveled the Hubert H. Humphrey Metro Dome, the Renaissance Festival, and the Minnesota Zoo. At the Hubert H. Humphrey Metro Dome, we watched a football team named the Vikings play a football game. When we were at the Renaissance Festival, we watched an armored joust, and went to one of the booths. At this festival, we got to bring Sadie in. Finally, we went to the Minnesota Zoo. At the Minnesota Zoo, we saw mammals, reptiles, birds, and fish. That’s what we did on day seven. When we reached the Hubert H. Humphrey Metro Dome, we were lucky, because Sadie was still asleep. We walked in with a huge crowd. When we finally got to the ticket booth, we bought four expensive tickets. We walked through the doors, and there was a weak looking guy standing there. This guy worked here. The guy said,” Here’s a fun fact for you. Did you know that about seventy-three million people have visited the Hubert H. Humphrey Metro Dome sense it opened in nineteen eighty-two?” Then, another guy, who loved football, came up to this weak guy, and shouted,” Who cares? This is football, not ballet.” That is what happened when we walked in.

We got to our seats, and sat down. We were just in time. The announcer started off by saying, “Welcome to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metro Dome. This is where you are going to see the Minnesota Vikings verse the Washington Cougars. So, let’s begin.” Suddenly, the football players stomped out onto the field. The captains of both teams stepped forward. They faced each other, and Minnesota’s captain shouted heads. The other captain shouted tails. The referee took out a coin, and flipped it. The referee looked down at the coin, and yelled, “Heads.” Next, the Vikings took the ball. That is how the game started. The football game was now in play. The quarterback threw the ball to one person, and that person threw it to another person. Finally, they threw it to one of the people in the end zone. Suddenly, everyone on the side we were on, stood up, and shouted,” Touchdown!” That happened on our side five more times. This happened to the Cougar’s side five times. Finally, the game was over. The Viking side then stood up, and shouted,” Yes! Yippy! Hooray! We won the game!” Next, my family got up, and squished through the doors. That is how the football game ended. Finally, we reached the black ford truck, and drove twenty-three and eight tenth miles to get to The Renaissance Festival.

When we got to the Renaissance Festival, the whole family came in, including our new puppy Sadie. We watched a show. The show was a live armored joust! We sat down in the second row, with Sadie tied to the chair. When watched the joust began, the jousters came out on their horses. One of the men had a purple feather coming out of his helmet, and the other man had a red feather. That’s how the beginning of the joust went.

Next, they started the joust. They started charging at each other, but both of the men missed. They kept trying and trying, until Sadie got loose. She ran onto the stage, and the both of the horses freaked out. The men fell off the horses, and Sadie sprinted back to us. We were told we had to leave the play, and that dogs can no longer watch the performances. So, we left the two jousters, and went to a booth.

We went to a booth that you tried to throw a ping-pong ball into a plastic cup. In the cup, there was gold fish that you could win. When we got to that specific booth, there was a lengthy line, so I picked Sadie up. She snuggled into my arms, and fell asleep in seconds. We waited for fifteen minutes, until we finally got to the front of the line. My brother was going to go first, so he grabbed hold of the ball. He tossed it, and missed. He was so angry. The next person to throw was my dad, so he just tossed the ball, and the worker stood right in front of him. He obviously missed. We left the booth, and walked to the truck. We got in, and drove twenty-five miles to arrive at the Minnesota Zoo.

When we got to the zoo, we were told that we only could stay for thirty minutes, so we thought Sadie would be fine. Also, Sadie was not allowed into the zoo, so we couldn’t bring her. We left Sadie, and ran in. First, we went to the mammals, so I went to the Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins. Nick went to the puma, my mom went to the sloth, and my dad visited the Tree Kangaroo. That’s what mammals we visited.

We finished the mammals, and were going to visit the fish, birds, and reptile. The animals that I visited included the toucan, the Tropical Herps, and the Seahorse. My brother visited the animals that he enjoyed. Those animals were the sea dragon, the Komodo Monitor, and the Hornbill. My parents went to a few, too. They went to the Bald Eagle, the Minnesota Herps, and the Atlantic Reef. Those are the animals that we visited.

Today we learned many things. I learned that a lot of people like football. I also learned that the end section that you get a touchdown in is called an end zone. We learned that seventy-three million people have visited the Hubert H. Humphrey Metro Dome sense nineteen eighty-two. We also learned you always need to watch your dog. They might somehow get loose, and possibly hurt. Lastly, we learned that there are many animals in the Minnesota Zoo. That is what we learned on day seven.

__Day 8__
Today, we visited three extraordinary places. The first place that we went to was the Mall of America. There is astonishing rides there. There are roller coasters, and all the stores you can think of, will be there. The second place we went to was the Martin Luther College. This place is huge! The third place we went to was Rochester. Rochester is one of the largest cities in Minnesota. These three places are the places that we visited, today.

Our drive from the Minnesota Zoo to the Mall of America, took eight and six tenths miles. In that short period of time, Sadie fell asleep, so we ran for the doors of the enormous building. When we got in this building, we got a map of it. The Mall of America had three or four floors. On the first floor, there were just shops on the perimeter. On the second floor, there were also just shops on the perimeter. On the perimeter of the third floor, there was the food court. On the middle of the mall was the Nickelodeon Universe. This stretched through all of the levels. That is what was on the floors of the food court.

We started walking through the store. Then, I noticed the Nickelodeon Universe. I told my parents we should go there first, so we did. My mom bought us eighteen dollar wrist bands, so we could go on about four rides. First, we went on the calmest ride. It was a log ride that went through a short line of songs. The songs went along with the displays. After the ride, we were drenched, because the log went down a few water slides. We got off of the ride, and headed for the second ride.

The second ride we went on was called the Brain Surge. On the Brain Surge, we had a lever that made you spin upside down and back around. Nick had it upside down the whole time. Finally, the machine pulled us back up, so it was straight. When I got off, I was red in the face, and I had an upset stomach. I toughed it out, so I could go on the next ride. Finally, we left the Brain Surge, and headed for a ride called the Fairly Odd Parent Rollercoaster.

When we got to the Fairly Odd Parent Rollercoaster, we got in the seats. The ride turned a corner, and I was going up backwards. When it got to the top, the seats started to spin, and the rollercoaster went down a spiral cord type thing. Then, we went up again, and it turned a corner. Then, it turned another corner, and it angled down. It sped down the angle, and then turned. It suddenly stopped! The ride finally came to an end, and it slowly made its way to the exit. The machine stopped, and we got out. We walked out of there, and went to the last ride.

The last ride was called Avatar. Avatar looked a lot scarier than it was. I had to take my shoes off, and picked a spot on the ride. The machine started when everyone was safely strapped in. First the gates that were in front of me opened. Then, the ground opened to a concrete pit. Suddenly, the ride jolted to a start. That is how Avatar started.

This is how the Avatar ended. The Avatar went up super fast, while spinning slowly. Sometimes you were going down backwards. On the other times, you were going down on the side of the machine, or you went down facing the ground. Bit by bit, the Avatar came to an end. The concrete came back up, and the gates did, too. We got off the ride, and grabbed our shoes. Now, we have to leave the Nickelodeon Universe.

Now, we are going to go to Aeropostale. We rode the escalade to the second floor, and turned a corner. Right at the corner was Aeropostale. We walked in, and I saw two awesome tank tops and a pair of shorts. I went to the dressing room, and tried it on. The green tank top looked adorable. The blue plaid tank top, also look adorable, but the shorts, were way to short. We went to the cash register, and I bought the two tank tops. That is what we bought at Aeropostale.

We rode the escalade back down to the first floor. We walked back through the doors. When we got to our black truck, Sadie was waiting there politely and calmly. I knew that she had to go, so I put her leash on, and took her to a grassed area. She squatted to the ground, and peed. I knew she was done, when she tugged to go back. We walked back, and got in. Now, we have to leave, and drive eighty-three and one tenth miles in order to arrive at the Martin Luther College.

When we arrived at our destination, we walked around the yard to see what they had there. They had a tennis court, a football field, and two softball diamonds! We also noticed that they had a music center. At the Martin Luther College, they had a library, a Luther Student Center, and much more. That is what they had at the Martin Luther College.

When we went inside the college, there were a lot of colossal-sized work areas. In the library, there were about five million books, along with computers, and tables. In the music center, there was a medium-sized stage that covered less than 1/16 of the area. Also, the music center had a few computers, and a very large area filled with chairs. The chairs were for all of the students who played an instrument. That is what the music center and library were like.

We walked back through the large couple of buildings. We jog passed the sports section, and we galloped through the gates. We got back to the truck, and saw Sadie fast asleep. We quietly got in, and Nick slammed the door. Sadie woke up with a jolt, and started to bark. She noticed that it was us, and fell back asleep. Now, we have to leave, and drive one hundred twelve miles to get to Rochester, Minnesota. When we got to Rochester, we noticed a Mayo Clinic. This is a clinic that was renowned, and is the largest IBM complex under one roof. “Yes! There are only like two hobos here. We should live here,” Nick blurted out. Next, my mom said,” Well… It is called one of the ‘Most Livable Cities.’ I wouldn’t mind living here.” We agreed on that, but we all knew that we couldn’t afford it, so we changed the subject. That is how our first part of Rochester went.

We parked the car, and got out. We just leaned against the truck, though. Then, I started to have a day dream about the Most Livable City thing. My family and I were walking through Rochester, and every door we passed had a person coming out and saying,” Hi. How’s your day?” Finally, we reached my cousins house. They did the same thing everybody else did. Suddenly, we were surrounded by the robot people of Rochester. I woke up from the illusion, and said,” I don’t want to live here anymore.” We got in our truck, and headed for home.

The last day of our trip, we learned that even if little children ride certain rides, doesn’t mean it is scary. We also learned that you always have to buy something at the Mall of America. We learned that little colleges can still be very large. Lastly, we learned that even if someplace is the Most Livable City, doesn’t mean that that town is for everyone. That is what we learned in our last day.